![Human Longevity’s acquisition of Cypher Genomics adds human genomic interpretation software solutions to its offerings. [iStock/Wavebreakmedia]](https://www.insideprecisionmedicine.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/382.jpeg "Human Longevity’s acquisition of Cypher Genomics adds human genomic interpretation software solutions to its offerings. [iStock/Wavebreakmedia]")
Human Longevity Inc. (HLI) said today it has acquired Cypher Genomics for an undisclosed price, in a deal that adds human genomic interpretation software solutions to the buyer’s offerings.
Based in San Diego, Cypher Genomics is a genome informatics company that has developed and markets Mantis™, software designed to enable customers to rapidly uncover clinically significant variants. The company has also developed Coral™, a biomarker discovery service.
“We developed Mantis and Coral to provide rapid, automated, genome interpretation at scale enabling disease gene identification, population-based studies, diagnostic development, and biomarker identification,” Cypher CEO and co-founder Ashley Van Zeeland, Ph.D., said in a statement.
For those software products, Cypher Genomics has collaborated with industry partners that include Celgene, Illumina, and Sequenom. Cypher has also established collaborations with academic institutions such as Scripps Translational Science Institute, University of Pennsylvania, and Clinic for Special Children.
Separately, in partnership with Lockheed Martin, Cypher Genomics was recently selected as a finalist in the Genomics England bidding process to aid in genome interpretation as part of the 100,000 Genomes Project—the U.K.’s effort to map 100,000 human genomes from NHS patients by 2017, and thus catapult itself to global leadership in genetic research into cancer and rare diseases.
“We look forward to joining the HLI team and to helping advance HLI's mission of applying the power of human genomics and informatics to improve healthcare,” Dr. Van Zeeland added.
Dr. Van Zeeland is one of the 14 Cypher Genomics employees who is joining HLI; she will head HLI’s pediatric business.
J. Craig Venter, Ph.D., and two co-founders launched HLI last year, with the goal of creating the world's largest and most comprehensive database of whole genome, phenotype and clinical data. The company aims to develop and apply large-scale computing and machine learning to make discoveries intended to revolutionize the practice of medicine.
